BS 8878 is the UK web accessibility code of practice released December 7, 2010. Jon Gooday and Robin Christopherson from Ability.net graciously provided an excellent overview of BS 8878 in a free webinar which focused on:

• what's in BS 8878
• how it relates to WCAG
• steps for implementing BS 8878.

William Lawrence (@v on Twitter) had a excellent summary of BS 8878: The #bs8878 is like #CMMI or #SixSigma with #a11y baked in. (Here's a quick summary of CMMI and SixSigma.)

Here are my notes from the webinar:

How BS 8878 builds on PAS 78

• PAS 78 released in 2006
• BS 8878 covers websites, mobile, any device that accesses the web
• Not a replacement for accessibility guidelines, rather it's a framework to embed accessibility at all stages of the web project development process
• BS 8878 is a code of practice, gives guidance rather than specific technical recommendation
• Can claim compliance based on "self-assessment" or can have an assessment by independent organization

Who is it for?

• All organizations
• People responsible for creating online content

Lloyds Banking Group Case Study

• In the past, Lloyds Banking Group looked at technical guidelines and used accessibility checklists
• Accessibility was added as a to-do item on checklist; as time became critical, accessibility dropped away
• Employs 100,000+ people, many who have disabilities
• In 2005 set up an IT Accessibility Center of Excellence with three areas of focus
  1. Standards
  2. Governance
  3. Education

What benefits were achieved?

• Increased sales
• More internet banking registrations
• Less Internet banking dormancy
• Higher levels of customer satisfaction
• Fewer customer complaints, particularly around accessibility
  • Accessibility complaints were more specific (call center staff were better able to handle accessibility complaints)

Internal benefits achieved

• 50% reduction in time taken to create Intranet sites - table-based code replaced by web standards
• 70% reduction in page size - easier to maintain

Key Elements in BS 8878

• Provides the framework on what should go into documentation
• Section 5 provides info on how to make justifiable decisions - audit trail, why particular steps were implemented
• Section 7 - where WCAG comes in - highlights best practice, distinction between inclusive design and a more personal approach
• Section 8 - testing - ensuring accessibility is checked throughout the process
• Yikes! Lots of annexes which provide more details (labeled Annex A through O)
• Only websites and services in the UK are covered
  • Presents an interesting issue for third party products; they are exempt from the law.
  • As UK web developer, you need to take great care in what third party applications are chosen

16 Steps

• User-centered design or lifecycle
• Need to provide more detail in the documentation

The 16 steps are divided into the following main areas:

1. Requirements Gathering
2. Strategic Decisions
3. Production
4. Acessibility Assurance
5. Communication
6. Maintenance and Review

Requirements Gathering

1. Define the purpose
2. Define the target audiences
3. Analyze the needs of the target audiences
4. Note any platform or technology preferences
5. Define relationship product will have with target audiences
6. Define user goals and tasks

Strategic Decisions

1. Consider the degree of user-experience the web product will aim to proivde
2. Consider inclusive design & user personalized approaches to accessibility
   
   1. How to adapt & change a website, color contraster, add text enlarger widgets
3. Choose the delivery platforms to support
4. Choose the target browsers, operating systems & assistive technologies to support
5. Choose whether to create or outsource the web product

Production (where WCAG comes in)

1. Define the web technology to be used in the web product
2. Use web guidelines to direct accessible web production

Accessibility assurance

1. Assure the web products accessibility through production
   1. Don't wait til test at the end.
   2. Be thorough in testing in all stages of the process. Will minimize any retrofitting you have to do.

Communication

1. Communicate the web products accessibility decisions at launch
   1. Web accessibility statement - Document useful information: what you're doing about accessibility, issues, and methods for changing the website to accommodate user's needs - enlarge text, etc.

Maintenance and Review

1. Plan to assure accessibility in all post-launch updates to the product

BS 8878 Wrap-Up Notes

1. New standard - launched December 7, 2010
2. Committee is expecting lots of feedback in next few months
3. Over 300 people reviewed document before launch
4. Hope the document is robust and usable

Question and Answers

1. BS 8878 is designed to be a UK standard, but effort spent ensuring it was harmonized with other guidance (like WCAG).
   1. While focused on UK law, the principles are the same.
   2. No reason why it couldn't be used by other countries.
2. BS 8878 is not a legal document, it's a code of practice. If you apply the principles, you are less likely to have accessibility complaints.
3. BS 8878 is trying to bring in accessibility at start of process.
   1. Embed in business thinking process to minimize accessibility issues in future.
4. Expect a 12-24 month timeframe to complete process.
   1. If taken to court, the BS8878 documentation process will give confidence for responding to accessibility complaints.